FINAL EXAM: Old English Translation Project

Requirements

Using a combination of the resources below and any you find on your own, translate The Wanderer from Old English into modern. You will want to do this translation in the same general style as the translation examples provided below, and provide a word-by-word interlinear glossing (where you write the definition of each word), your final translation. Your translation will probably not look exactly like any other, since every translator makes different choices in how they interpret a text, but comparing yours to others will help you get a feel for meter as well as give you ideas for how to make a particular line work that you may have found tricky.

To format the full translation document, please make a cover page with the names of every student in your group (and the lines they translated), and the course details: English 2322, the semester and days of the week your class meets, and the due date for this project. Only the student who has compiled the document should submit the final glossing and translation to turnitin.com. All students will upload their individual translator notes to turnitin.com. The file name for the translation should be modelled as such: Fall2015.2322MW.11-1230.docx, using whatever designation your class falls into (semester, year, class, meeting days, and either RT for regular term or SS for second start).

Each student will also write a 750+ word essay narrating their experience with this project. You should include moments of triumph and frustration, what you learned, why you did or did not enjoy this project, and things you would have done differently if you had a second opportunity to do this project. Name your translator's notes document according to the following model: firstname_lastname.doc or firstname_lastname.docx and submit it to turnitin.com in the section labelled "final exam translator's notes."

Ideas and Tips

1. Each group will work collaboratively, breaking up the work into equal parts each student will translate. Meet up often outside of class to help push each other to progress, and to troubleshoot potential issues.
2. Set up a Facebook or similar group for the class/class translations. This is an easy and efficient way to help one another, to pool resources, and to have someone to vent to when translating is difficult or frustrating.

3. Students should examine at least 3 other translations of this poem after writing their own, to check for issues of confusion or to see how others have handled their translation.

4. Consult me to resolve arguments you cannot solve on your own.

5. Use respectful English in your essay, but do not worry about using formal, academic English.

6. Put together a Google Doc for each group's translation. This will allow everyone to see, in real time, what has been uploaded and what is still missing, as well as streamlining the process for each group's compiler.

Good luck!